


The Warriors of Crystal

by WolfeyeWinter5



Category: Final Fantasy Type-0, Final Fantasy XIII Series, Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-16
Updated: 2019-07-16
Packaged: 2020-06-29 18:02:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,307
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19835629
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WolfeyeWinter5/pseuds/WolfeyeWinter5





	The Warriors of Crystal

The sweet smell of flowers lingered in the air as people mingled among the bright crystals which stood at the very center of the Reservoir. A powerful aura almost seeming to draw us in as we stood to watch at the edge of the tree line in order to ensure that no animals would infiltrate the area around us. We could never be too careful with what happened three years ago, from the incident in Gapra Whitewood to the quick and devastating spread of the bioweapons which stumbled out of the area. Evacuations may have cleared out the most at risk of the population, but Eden had yet to fully fish out any strangling humans. Even to this very day!

But, here in the Reservoir, we were careful to ensure that any monster populations could be handled should they appear. We weren't worried, and Eden was happy to have fewer people to take care of. After all, a city in the sky can do little in the way to provide for itself. And the local hunters in the Yaschas Massif and the wildlands of Pulse could barely keep themselves fed and clothed, much less the entirety of the world. 

My eyes wandered towards a group of teens clad in crimson capes. The signature of Rubrum’s Class Zero, the group of children rumored to be the saviors of their world, Orience, one day. However, they didn't look too important when they were just standing around in the open, no weapons to be seen. Yet, if you looked at any footage from the reclamation of Rubrum not even two years ago, they seemed like magic-wielding demons.

“I don't think I've ever seen you so interested in our guests. Usually, you just seem to look past them. What's changed?” I groaned as Rouge slung his arm around my shoulder, his eyes roaming around the multiple crystal structures which levitated above the ground. The many people giving excitable remarks whenever they seemed to see something within the crystal. Everyone knew that there was an unusual black mist which was absent in any other crystals within either of the four worlds. However, everyone seemed to see something different. Sometimes they were odd variations of Pulsian or Cocoonian beasts. Other times, they were the things seen only on the murals which detail our forgotten past.

“I dunno… maybe because we don't see members of Rubrum's elite cadet unit wandering around here. We usually get tourists. Nothing more, nothing less. Don't you think it's-” My words were cut short as I heard the raven-haired male chuckle. A sure sign that he knew what I was going to say, but felt the words were merely me overreacting. Yet, his chuckle was almost lacking the mirth he usually possessed in these occurrences. Almost as if he himself was worried about it - like he was afraid to hear it come from someone else's mouth. He was afraid that something was going to happen here.

“Let’s try to stick to the positives. It's a good day, people are here and we haven't seen a monster around here in what - a week.” Rouge patted me on the shoulder before resuming his patrol. The male walking past the group of students, a small glint of curiosity almost seeming to flash through his eyes before his gaze turned to the dense jungle-like forest before him. His figure disappearing among the bright green flora.

After he had left, I gave a small sigh and began to head away from the center of the city. My feet treading the same old wood path that they did every year during the Crystals’ Call. Rouge at least got to walk through the forest every few years, but ever since I joined the “Tricksters” Squadron, I had run the same patrol every time. Yet, I was the one who had been apart of the group longer between the two of us. But, he was Rouge, the dashing young man who everyone trusted. Me? I was the reckless little pup who didn't know what she was doing. The one only the most desperate of people would turn to, yet somehow I didn't envy my friend as much as I looked up to him. He was a hero in the making in my mind - most of the Tricksters were.

A smile finally graced my features as I reached the market area. The sweet smell of flowers only getting stronger until I stood near the flower shop. My eyes scanning across the displays that stood in the window. There were different colored flowers mingled in each vase. Blues, purples, reds - you name the color and more than likely it was somewhere in one of them.

From within, exited two girls followed by the elderly, Ms. Harriet. Her bright brown eyes almost seeming to brighten as I walked past. The little old lady excitedly taking my arm into hers before I could run off. “I won't let you get away this time, Wolfeye. I want to hear all about the people at the Crystals.”

I groaned as the woman dragged her heels into the ground. Effectively hindering any movement away from the area. Maybe this was why I was given this route for patrol. Maybe because it was the least likely to be important in the grand scheme of guarding our little city and because I could keep Ms. Harriet from bothering the others. Yeah, I have a feeling that that was the main reason for it. “Why don't I walk you over and you can see for yourself, ma'am?”

She simply scuffed and blew my response off like it was the silliest question known to man. The old florist even shaking her head to add more credence to the fact that I had, in fact, said something stupid. It was the same line I likely gave her every year related to this very thing. “No, no. I've seen those damn crystals every single day of my life, why would I want to go see them? I simply want to know who's there.”

I sighed and began to tell the old woman of the people I saw. Running through all the typical questions. How many were tourists? Almost all. How many looked to be from Pulse or Cocoon? A few. But, the last was a new one. One she hadn't asked me in the five years I had been walking past her shop during the festival. Were there any military officers? 

My baffled look must have instantly given away the answer to her question as she frowned. Ms. Harriet's obsession with knowing what was going on with the celebration but never wanting to actually see it for herself was one reason that she was odd. But, there was always that thought that seemed to worm its way from the depths of your subconscious whenever she said something strange and then made that very face. Did she know something we didn't and how? 

“How did you know that, Ms. Harriet?” The woman looked down at the sidewalk with contemplation, as if weighing her options. Like she didn’t want me to know the full truth or maybe she wasn't sure if it was a good idea to tell me. “Is something bad going to happen? Please, Ms. Harriet, if nothing else tell me this…”

The elder gave a small smile as she looked up, however, there wasn’t anything happy about that. Her eyes seemed darker than they normally were as she patted me on the shoulder and readied to make her way back to her shop. “I'm sorry, but I don't know that - yet.” The woman shooed me off, the action almost seeming foreign when she always wanted to walk along with me. It only served to make me more nervous as I continued along with my patrol. 

“Maybe, everything'll be fine.”


End file.
